low budget post-apocalyptic drama plays out by the numbers

Rating: 4/10 (7 February 2005)

WARNING - SPOILERS! Contrived, tedious and derivative. Large parts of this film are so utterly devoid of imagination that only my faint hopes of watching the deeply irritating leading man suffer a hideous and hopefully prolonged fate kept me watching. Director Danny Boyle has a strong background in television and this film looks like a TV movie shot on low budget DV. The plot draws heavily on "Survivors"; an old BBC post-apocalyptic drama series that routinely displayed far more imagination and invention than this rather feeble effort. The cast are adequate for the undemanding roles they are required to play and the story unfolds strictly by the numbers. It might have made the grade as a TV pilot and would make a reasonable 'Friday-night-in-with-a-pizza' movie, but as a cinematic experience this film leaves a lot to be desired. 4/10